Union Bay Shipbuilding

"Opportunities are known to exist for those who have the knack and capital. Røkke had enough savvy and also a good reputation as a skilled deck boss, but no one could accuse him of having a large capital base, so normally he would not have had a chance. But time was running out for the shipyard and the bank. They knew that a completed Ruggen without a buyer would be doomed to failure. It would be like lying down and waiting for the wolves. Kjønsvik managed to convince the Commercial Bank that the youngster could really handle the heat. It probably helped that the bank didn't really have a choice. They had long since paid out the money for the boat because they had lent money to the shipyard, so they actually came out better off by at least getting the boat into the water and generating revenue. It was agreed to give Røkke a chance, and the Commercial Bank agreed to lend him the entire purchase sum. Thus, Kjell Inge Røkke became a shipowner at 24 years old and the proud owner of the prototype and the first boat of the Ruggen type – and that before the boat was fully equipped. For it was only the hull that was built at Flohr, the rest of the job was to be done at the neighboring shipyard, Union Bay Shipbuildin"

"Røkke had barely a nickel to his name, true, but the bank was persuaded by Røkke's expertise and impressive determination. And once again, Røkke took advantage of another party's financial woes, for US Bank immediately realized it was much better to have the boats out at sea rather than lying idle on land. Therefore, they agreed to lease the boats to Røkke and also gave him the option to buy them if everything went well. This is how Kjell Inge Røkke and Bob Breskovich got their hands on the two crab boats, which they renamed to "The Harvester" and "The Challenger" - "Aleutian Harvester" and "Aleutian Challenger." They hardly put any money in, but managed to stretch US Bank to provide new loans for repairing and improving the boats. The job, costing $250,000, was carried out at Goos Bay. This was a unique chance for Røkke to turn things around. Now it depended on his skills as a fisherman. If he was good, he could end up as a boat owner again before long, and everything went very well until Røkke had to settle the bill for the repairs. Then everything went awry, and according to the shipyard, they dodged the last $20,000 by playing tricks and shuffling between different companies. Afterwards, the frail vessels were sailed straight to Union Bay Shipbuilding for extensive rebuilding."